Israeli Parliament sends Armenian Genocide resolution to Education & Culture Committee

YEREVAN, JULY 5, ARMENPRESS. The Israeli Parliament (Knesset) has sent the Armenian Genocide resolution to the Education and Culture Committee: 24 out of 120 MPs voted in favor of the decision, no one voted against, former Israeli lawmaker, founder of the Israel-Armenia inter-parliamentary friendship group Alexander Zinker told ARMENPRESS, noting that the Jewish people who survived the Holocaust have no moral right to ignore the tragedy of another people.

“It is noteworthy that Israel itself acknowledges the mass slaughter of Armenians, however it refuses to name it Genocide. Similar behavior of member of the Israeli Government and representatives of several social-political structures, in my opinion, is the factor of perceiving their own tragedy as exceptional”, Zinker said.

According to him, Israel’s position regarding the Armenian Genocide also depends on its regional policy. “I mean the relations with Turkey – an important Muslim state in the Middle East. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had honestly announced that there are more important things than politics, diplomacy, and mass massacres of peoples are in this category. Apparently, by coming to power, the Israeli political figures forget their promises, despite the fact that recent surveys show Israelis are in favor of recognizing the Armenian Genocide”, Zinker said.

Nevertheless, Zinker doesn’t think that now is the most convenient time for expecting the recognition of the Armenian Genocide, however he assures that they will continue struggling. “Taking into consideration regional issues, as well as the recent agreement between Turkey and Israel regarding normalization of ties – it isn’t the best time to achieve positive result. In any case, our struggle aimed at the recognition of the Armenian Genocide will be consistent. Israeli leaders will not once expose Erdogan’s Turkey’s real anti-Israel face. They will eventually have to understand that there is historical truth, and not a single political intrigue can overshadow the horrifying attempt of exterminating an entire people”, he said.

On July 5, the 3rd debate on the Armenian Genocide issue took place in the Israeli Parliament. The debate was initiated by Zehava Gal-On, President of the Meretz party.